Monday, April 18, 2011

Humble Pie: Cheese Quiche Recipe

When my oven is done preheating and the buzzer goes off, my boys exclaim, "pie!" If I am working in the kitchen and the oven timer goes off, Zeke shouts, "Mommy's pie!"

And it's not because I'm baking so many pies. In fact, I am pretty sure they've never even tasted pie. But they have a toy kitchen/diner, which came with two slices of pie. One slice has been M.I.A. for some time now. The other resides in the oven. Thus the connection.

This brings me to last week, when I extended a last minute dinner invitation to a friend. As I surveyed my sparsely populated fridge and pantry, I was about to reach for my delivery menus when a pie crust, eggs, cheese, and half of a zucchini caught my eye. I had the makings of a quiche. A "cheese pie," if you will.

With great fanfare that night, I introduced the "cheese pie." I talked it up over dinner then saved it for dessert. Serving up the first bite, I scraped off some of the egg so it was mostly crust and cheese. The Dude dug it. Zeke happily chowed down, too. I gave the guys a couple more pieces, egg and all, and they excitedly ate "cheese pie." Bitty, however, poked at it skeptically before handing it back to me. My little girl knows dessert when she sees it.

With less and less in the fridge (preparing for Passover), the quiche became the leftover meal of choice. My husband and I finished it before I could offer it to the kids again. But a brunch the next weekend gave me just the excuse I needed to make another "cheese pie," just days before pie becomes off-limits.

And in that short period my luck radically changed. This time, Dude and Zeke greeted the "cheese pie" with disdain. They wouldn't even taste it. Bitty did take a bite or two. Then she casually dropped pieces three and four on the floor.

Inexplicably, the oven buzzer still elicits excited cries of "pie!" Maybe they're just holding out for apple or cherry.

Place the cheese in the pie shell and distribute evenly to cover the bottom. Whisk together the eggs and milk. Season as desired with salt, pepper, etc. Add zucchini, if using, and mix to combine. Pour egg-milk mixture over the cheese in the pie shell.

Place the pie pan on the lined baking sheet. Bake 35 to 45 minutes (keep checking until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean).

Cool 5 minutes before cutting into wedges.

Notes:

This recipe is as simple as it reads! And it's open to interpretation. Add a different veggie, use a different cheese. It will be good no matter what you do.